China's potential weapons against US tariffs could backfire on its growth — here's why

One option, some economists say, is a move by China's central bank to further devalue its currency, making its exports cheaper and more attractive and thereby offsetting the costs of the tariffs. The yuan has depreciated around 8 percent against the dollar since April, and economists Bo Zhuang and Rory Green of TS Lombard believe that the 25 percent levies placed on the bulk of Chinese goods "would damage China's trade enough to provoke over the next six months or so a further 15 percent depreciation."